


Here For You

by KyberHearts_And_StardustSouls



Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Star Wars Setting, Other, Post-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Star Wars - Freeform, Star Wars AU, mention of hospital stay, mention of medical devices, mention of physical pain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-30
Updated: 2017-03-30
Packaged: 2018-10-13 01:33:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10503681
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KyberHearts_And_StardustSouls/pseuds/KyberHearts_And_StardustSouls
Summary: This is my first attempt at writing a Star Wars AU short. Please be gentle.Fandom: Star WarsPairing: Poe x ReaderWARNINGS: Talk of hospital stay and minor procedure to include use of needles. Mention of physical pain.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at writing a Star Wars AU short. Please be gentle.  
> Fandom: Star Wars  
> Pairing: Poe x Reader
> 
> WARNINGS: Talk of hospital stay and minor procedure to include use of needles. Mention of physical pain.

 

You paced to your T-70 in the hangar. The noise level at peak decimal count with several crews working simultaneously. Cutting of metal, engine tests, and loud beeping drowned out most yelled commands.    
Inspection day was approaching fast, and the base’s pilots, along with flight mechanics and droids, scrambled to finish repairs. Everyone knew that any X-Wing not passing inspection meant that the corresponding squadron would be grounded and due for more training. A thought that left you in shudders. Nothing worse than sitting out missions, especially since that often came with teased comments of how grounded crews should return to the academy.

  
You looked around; the crew of each X-Wing in your squadron working hard. You weren’t too worried. Although the crews under your command were made up of mostly fresh-out-of-the-academy faces; thrown together because a new squad was desperately needed, -  _and somehow expected to make mistakes_ -; not a single X-Wing in your squad had failed an inspection thus far.   
  
You smiled; pride in the back of your mind. For patchwork crews, everyone worked well together. Sure, you were known to // _run a tight ship_ //, stricter than other superiors. You felt like you had to be, considering that your assignment, too, had been last minute, and you didn’t want to disappoint General Organa; the person who had recommended you for a transfer here.   
  
The crew, of course, knew that they could come to you if there were issues. They knew they could confide their deepest fears and worries; or seek you out if they felt treated unfairly. And you always listened intently, ensuring you understood all points of views, often ending conversations with calm, self-help kind of advice, because that was something you were good at. Conflict resolution. Mediation. And negotiation. Skills, General Organa kept repeating when you had initially met the rest of command nearly a year ago.   
  
You snickered at the memory, then shook your head. Despite your piloting skills, you had expected a position in command, but instead, the General had decided to assign you to a new X-Wing squadron of what she had described as “misfits and true rebels — according to their jackets [*]”.   
  
Somehow, you didn’t see it like that. Even when you had first read over their files - _some of them as long as epic stories from way back when_  - you didn’t see it like that. All you saw were individuals broken by the aftermaths of war. Orphans, single parent raised, or runaways. Much like yourself. Much like many of the people in the resistance. Much like any of the pilots here.  
  
You smiled; pride in the back of your mind, because they were  _your_  patchwork crews.  _Your patchwork family_ , really. Only you truly knew their pasts. And only you seemed to know how to connect with them to make them all work as a team. Anyone else who tried was met with cross-armed defiance and a hefty side of sarcasm.   
  
Almost anyone, that is. Only two other people managed to make your crew fall in line when needed. The General was a given. The other was a pilot, who, if it wasn’t for a higher rank, would’ve fit right into your little patchwork family. Especially attitude wise.  
  
“Shouldn’t you be helping them?” a voice to your right snapped you out of your trance. Your head shot right, and you were greeted with a cocky smile behind deep brown eyes.   
“Like you’re helping your squad, Commander Dameron?” you raised your brow.   
“I have more than one,” Poe mirrored your raised brow with a cross-armed stance while making himself tall. “And I’ll be helping them all,” his face fell back into that cocky smile. Show off.  
  
You shook your head. Despite your communication skills, you felt it best not to get drawn into that type of conversation. Mainly because you knew Poe was one of those. The type that stood overly confident with an ego so big, you wondered how his head actually fit into his helmet. “I better go check on them,” you geared towards your X-Wing, your mind already loaded with questions of progress of repairs.  
“Y/N! Lunch? Later? Mess-hall is serving something edible for once,” Poe jested.  
“As long it’s not a date!” you quirked your brow again, then walked off.  
“I promise,” Poe called after you. You heard him chuckle.   
  
You waited a few minutes before you peered around to see if he was still standing there. Relieved that he had moved on to help someone from Red Squadron. You watched Poe while he helped hold a panel in place because once again, the lift was broken. A recurring issue due to underfunding.   
  
Poe’s droid, BB-8, whirred around to help with repairs. A couple of times, the sphered droid beeped frantically when almost getting hit by falling screws; the little unit sounding as cocky as its owner when Poe told it to calm down and just keep handing them tools. When the panel was fixed in place, Poe patted the crew on their backs for a job well done, then inspected other panels for fissures while talking to his droid; also praising the unit for a job well done.  
  
That was something you liked about Poe. For one, he wasn’t afraid to get his hands dirty, albeit that show off attitude of his. Secondly, he treated everyone with respect, even droids. No one felt like a second-class citizen around him.   
  
You continued watching when BB-8 whirred around, coming to a dead stop when it noticed you looking at Poe; beeping excitedly at Poe.   
“Working hard, I see,” Poe called out with a smirk, then winked at you.  
  
You shook your head again with a scoffed chuckle. It wasn’t that you disliked Poe. In fact, the two of you had actually become good friends since you had started your assignment here. But that’s all it was. Friendship.   
  
You had set the boundaries from the get-go. You had set them because you knew his type. You knew, he took that confidence behind closed doors, and you didn’t want any of it.   
  
At least not the cocky, know-it-all, can-do-it-all type of confidence, because somehow you knew that was a front. Because you knew his type: overly confident with a big ego who only let his guard down when he thought no one was paying attention or when alone. You knew his type because listening and observing were your strengths, and you knew people like him had a side to them they were scared to share. So they put on a mask of inflated confidence to hide their flaws.  
  
Most people usually got turned away by such attitude, almost a little brazen at times; but somehow it worked for Poe because he did, after all, treat others with respect, always trusting their capabilities as much as his own. Still,— you didn’t want any of it.  
  
Instead, you hoped he would let up at some point. Give you a little more of himself than witty remarks and hotshot pilot stories. After all, he’d done the same for Finn and Rey, and he’d met them right around the time you had been assigned to this base. But you hoped he would do so without prompt. You hoped, secretly, that he somehow noticed you wanted the real Poe and not the mask version of.   
  
“Daydreaming again, Major Y/LN?” Poe was suddenly next to you. You stood perplexed for a minute. When did he even get there? “Everything alright?” he drew in his brows when he saw you fazed out for a moment.  
“Yeah — YES… just catching up with uhm… all these notes,” you awkwardly scrolled on the screen of your pad, pretending to read over maintenance issues that needed fixing. In reality, you couldn’t focus; a throbbing headache that had become worse over the day had your attention stray more than once.   
“Right. Why don’t we call an early lunch? A long lunch actually. I think the crews deserve it,” Poe searched for your eyes with his, and when you looked up you just nodded in agreement.  
  
“Alright, early lunch, everyone! Two-hour break. Snap, can you let them know in the back?” Poe called out; the other pilot nodding and taking off to let others know about call for break.   
“Amazing how fast people move when they know there’s good food,” Poe laughed on the way to the mess-hall. More than once, he and you had to swerve as to not get run over.   
  
Poe yelled when another young lieutenant nearly made you trip; surprised you didn’t discipline first. “You sure, you’re alright Y/N? You look like you’re somewhere else,” he nudged your shoulder with his.  
“Yes,” you fibbed and Poe immediately took notice. You both stopped walking, Poe waiting for the truth. “I don’t know. Feeling a little tired,” you smiled thinly. You really did feel exhausted but had no idea where it came from. You’d slept long enough, had had breakfast, even had time for meditation, and that was a rare thing.  
  
“Then let’s get some grub, huh? You need energy. Long nights ahead,” Poe wiggled his brows, hint of mischief in his eyes, and you chuckled with a disbelieving head shake. You both got your trays and coffee, then squeezed past filled tables to one all the way in the back.   
  
The noise level was high, again. This time however it was filled with laughter and stories from everyone’s life. It was rare to see everyone in such a good mood. Recent back to back mission successes had that kind of effect. Definitely a boost for morale and it showed in lightheartedness and in how fast all the crews had been working.   
  
“How did the mission go?” Poe dug into his food while waiting for an answer.   
You pulled in your brows, a little surprised he had asked. Actually, not so much that he had asked because he always did, but that he looked at you with a serious face. Usually, there was a tinge of //tell me about the excitement// to him. Usually, he prodded for combat encounters, escape flights, and near death experiences. But he sat serious-faced, still chowing down while waiting for an actual answer.  
  
“It went well. We got all the intel we needed. And we made it all back,” you smiled. “A bit surprised it went so smoothly,” you narrowed your eyes, your voice taking on whispering levels.  
“No one followed you?” Poe sipped on his coffee this time.  
“No. In fact, the base was abandoned,” you played with your food, still not having taken a single bite.   
“And they left it behind unscathed? Including all the files?” Poe perked his brow.  
  
You put your fork down and pondered for a moment. “Are you interrogating me, Commander?”   
“No. Should I be?” Poe put his cup down and stared at you. An uncomfortable and lingering stare. Like an unspoken accusation.  
You scoffed out a chuckle and clenched your jaw. “You don’t trust me,” you stated with certainty. Poe just lifted his brow. “I see. So because it was too easy, you think someone tipped them off? Someone in my squad? Maybe even me? Maybe to feed us false intel?” you paused. Poe looked at you, still serious. But there was a hint of surprise behind his eyes. Surprise that you had narrowed it down so quickly.   
  
You got up and grabbed your tray. “No worries, Commander. The General asked me the same questions. It’s good to know she sends her number one to make sure the story checks out. I’d have done the same thing,” you stated coldly before gearing to return your tray. You smashed it quite loudly on the counter, and people stopped to watch you walk away.  
  
Outside the mess-hall, you looked at your watch, realizing that you had another hour and a half to spare. So you decided to head back to your quarters. You needed a nap because for whatever reason you felt even more exhausted now than just before lunch had started, the headache stronger, too.  
  
You curled into your bed and went over what had just happened. Did they really think you were a spy? Or anyone in your squadron? You trusted your squad more than anyone. And General Organa trusted you. You’d never given anyone a reason not to. Neither had your squad.   
  
Your head spun at the thoughts. You set your alarm, and not long after, you fell asleep. When it went off, you shot up with a pant. You felt warm beyond reason. You wobbled to a stand and went to wash your face, the water a cooling relief.  
  
An hour of sleep, you should’ve felt refreshed. Instead, everything seemed to ache. But your mind was in a //no rest// type of mode. The inspection was getting close and your crews had to finish repairs. You had to be there. You had to be. Come hell or high water.   
  
You dragged towards the hangar. Each step feeling heavier than the one before. It was getting difficult to breathe, too. You reached your X-Wing and looked around. Half your squad was missing. “Lieutenant Kirana, where is the rest of the squad?” you asked with a slur as though you’d been drinking, and with shortened gasps. You moved closer to the young lieutenant, noting that Kirana’s skin had changed from deep purple to pale gray.   
“I don’t know, Major Y/LN. They were at the ca…” Kirana swayed, then collapsed.  
  
You clung on to the side of your X-Wing, looking down on the young lieutenant first, then peering around, scanning to see if anyone was nearby, but everyone seemed too busy and too far away to notice. Your lungs started to feel like fire each time you inhaled and your muscles ached with each small movement. Your vision became blurred as pain increased.  
  
Through squinting eyes, you glimpsed Poe talking to BB-8. You opened your mouth to call for him but his name came out in a strangled husk. You strained to step forward, but your foot dragged limply, skimming a tool tray in the process, a few wrenches falling to the ground.  
  
The noise startled you.

Another step.

Just one more. 

_Come on._

_COME ON!_

**_NOTICE ME ALREADY!_** you screamed internally.

“ **POE**!” you managed to yell at last.  
“ **Y/N!!!!** ” you saw Poe speeding towards you, then — everything went black.  
  
Poe caught you just in time, with an inch to spare before your head would’ve crashed onto some tools scattered across the floor.   
“Get a medic. We need to get Y/N to sickbay!” Poe commanded. “ **NOW!** ”   
  
You came to, but you wished you hadn’t. Everything hurt. Your lungs felt on fire. You heard Poe call your name, telling you to stay with him, but were too weak to reply. You couldn’t even keep your eyes open. You felt Poe lift you from the ground. “Y/N is burning up. We need to get to sickbay, now!!!” Poe’s voice rasped as he carried you. You could feel air grazing your skin as your body seemed to rock in his hold. He was running.   
  
You opened your eyes, Poe facing ahead to make sure he didn’t run into anything or anyone. You held your gaze for as long as possible, and for the first time, since you had met him, you saw fear settled at the corners of his eyes. He looked down for a second, faking a smile.  "We’re almost there. Stay with me, Y/N,“ Poe’s voice faded. Then you were out again.  
  
"Dammit. Why do we only have two Bacta Tanks? Y/N needs it, too!” you heard Poe shout when you came to again. Not even a fraction of a second later, you became aware of the pain shooting through your veins. Your whole body felt on fire now. You trembled. You wanted to scream but couldn’t; a breathing tube extended from your mouth. You wished they would submerge you in ice. In water. Anything really to take off the edge.   
  
You felt your skin getting pierced and pinched in several places. Loud beeping came from all sorts of directions. IVs and monitors were hastily getting attached to your body, that much you knew.   
  
You tried to open your eyes but the overhead light hurt so badly, you squeezed them shut immediately. For a sliver of a second though, you saw Poe next to your left. He looked angry, furious really, while yelling at a nurse.  
“I’m sorry commander, but there are two patients who are in worse shape,” the nurse remained calm.  
  
“General…” Poe’s voice cracked.  
“I know. I heard. I came here as soon as possible. Do we know what it is?” General Organa’s voice was soothing in your ears. She always did remain calm under pressure.  
“Yes. And no,” another voice chimed in. A doctor maybe, you thought. You wished you could open your eyes long enough to take in the scene. Maybe they’d see you were awake. But every time you tried, the light felt like needles in your eyes.   
  
“What do you mean, yes and no?” Poe snapped.  
“It looks like a strain of the Dantari Flu, but it can’t be. The last case was recorded over 30 years ago. At one of our old bases. The incubation time doesn’t coincide either. It’s … it’s as though…,” the doctor stalled.  
“As though, what? WHAT?” Poe sounded even more agitated.  
“Commander. I need you to calm down,” General Organa spoke softly.   
“General. Please. I… I…,” Poe’s voice cracked again. You felt a brush against your hand.  
“I know. I know how much Y/N means to you,” General Organa whispered. “But it doesn’t help any of us if you lose it now. — Now. You were saying, doctor?”  
  
“I think the First Order is experimenting with bioengineered viruses. The strain looks like Dantari Flu, but it’s not. Incubation time to first symptoms — it’s all too fast. The mission was a week long, they’ve been back less than three days,” you heard the doctor explain.   
“Can’t you make a vaccine?” Poe asked, that edge still clinging to his voice.  
“No. Not unless we know for sure how they got infected.”  
“Is anyone else infected?” General Organa’s voice took over again.  
“No, only the pilots from Shadow Squadron. Their crews have also been quarantined but so far we’re not seeing any changes in their health. That doesn’t mean they’re not infected. Same goes for us,” the doctor’s voice gained distance.   
  
You heard mumbles of a mission and Poe volunteering, then the voices disappeared. Clearly, they’d walked off to see other patients or to discuss whatever mission you heard mumbled about. You slowly opened your eyes again, no overhead light blinding you this time. You scanned the room you were in. Someone had turned off all the lights. Only the edges of the door towards the nurses’ station looked illuminated.  
  
You closed your eyes, silent tears streaming down the sides of your face because the pain was too intense. Too much to handle. So much so, you passed out, again. Then a loud alarm shook you awake.  
“Code Blue. Crash cart now!” you heard from behind the door. If you had to guess, the person in the next room over was the Code Blue. You panicked. Your heart rate rising. Was it someone from your squad?  You wanted to call for someone but you couldn’t. Panic rising even more at your inability to make any sound. You breathing became short. Not even a second later you heard rushed footsteps enter your room.  
  
“Major Y/LN, you need to stay calm. Major — Major…” you heard the nurse repeat. Through blurred vision, you saw her readying a syringe, and you knew you’d be out again. You didn’t want to be. You wanted to know who the Code Blue was.  
“Shhhh. You’re going to be ok,” the nurse held your hand after she’d squeezed the contents of the syringe into the drip. Everything went hazy, then your mind faded to black.  
  
When your mind came to, you felt someone grasp your hand, but for whatever reason, you couldn’t open your eyes. In fact, your whole body felt immovable, almost like you were paralyzed. You could feel some air brushing over your skin. IV needles still pinched your skin, too. You just couldn’t lift your extremities.   
“Can Y/N hear me?” you heard Poe’s voice ask whoever else was in the room.  
“We’ve never been able to prove it, but I believe patients pick up something,” a woman’s voice explained. There were sounds of pens clicking. Then a door opened and closed.  
  
“Y/N. I don’t know if you can hear me. I hope you can,” Poe whispered. “I — I wanted to tell you something. I guess now is as good a time as any, since you can’t talk back,” he chuckled. You could almost feel the smug smirk in his voice because you, indeed, couldn’t talk back. You heard Poe draw in a breath. Then you felt your hand lift, except you weren’t doing the lifting. You felt scratches against your skin. Like short hair. Then the warmth of velvet. It wasn’t until you heard a shallow, almost inaudible click, that you realized that Poe must’ve kissed your hand.   
  
“I love you, Y/N. I’m sorry for acting like a fool around you. I think I was scared you’d reject me if I told you how I really felt. You’ve been on my mind since the day you yelled at me for taking your multi-tool. No one had ever dared to yell at me. Well — at least not anyone below my rank,” he paused. Another chuckle a sign of contemplated amusement.  
  
“And I’m sorry I doubted you for even a short moment,” he paused again. “Anyways. I came here to tell you, we’re going to go find a cure. A vaccine. Medication. Anything. And then, I’ll be back. For you. To be here. For you,” Poe pulled your hand in for another kiss. He replaced your hand to your side, then you felt him swipe some hair from your face. “I’ll be back, Y/N,” he repeated. "Don’t go anywhere,” he whispered, then you felt him lean a kiss onto your forehead.   
  
You wanted to scream. You wanted to call out to Poe to please not leave. Why couldn’t you open your eyes to make him see that you had heard? Why couldn’t you move your hands to get a hold of him? Why? You couldn’t even cry. Before you knew it, your mind drifted again.   
  
You heard soft music some time later. You fluttered your eyes open, the paralyzed feeling in your limbs replaced by aching joints. You reached to your mouth, your arm weak and heavy, and realized that the breathing tube had been removed. Only one IV drip and a heart monitor were now attached to you. You pulled in a long breath. A long, deep, soothing breath. How good it felt to breathe without pain.   
  
You steered your attention to your left, a mop of dark curls in a chair coming to view, and a light snore echoing through the room.   
“He’s been here, since he got back, Major Y/LN,” a soft voice said from your right. You slowly turned your head towards the voice and saw General Organa smiling your way.  
You managed to say “How long?” before your voice gave out. Your throat felt dry.  
  
“…were you out? Three months,” the General gently lifted a cup towards your lips so you could drink some water.   
“My squad? I heard a Code Blue….” you trembled out. You could feel the panic rising, again.   
“They’re ok. All of them. In fact, they’re already in rehab. You’re the last one,” the General smiled.  
“Great. Now they’ll think, they can get away with stuff,” you mumbled.  
  
“Don’t worry. I made sure they won’t,” Poe’s voice came in from the left with a rasp.  
You returned your attention back to the left and were greeted with a heavy-lidded gaze and at least a week’s worth of stubble.  
“You look like crap,” you chuckled, then winced. The fire was gone from your veins, but your body still ached. Likely from being in the same position for three months.   
Poe raised his brow in that cocky way. “You should talk,” he chuckled.  
  
“I’m going to check with the others. You take it easy, Y/N. I don’t want to see you back until you’ve been medically cleared! Your body has been through a lot. Poe will explain. — And— it’s not a choice. It’s an order! No work until you’re cleared!” General Organa’s face was stern. No way to argue yourself out of that command.  You nodded in agreement before the General left.  
  
Your attention trailed back to Poe. He sat with an exhausted expression. He reached for your hand, wrapped his fingers around, and pulled it to his lips, leaving small kisses on the back.  
“I know,” you whispered.  
“Know what?” he asked with a smile. It was a tired smile. A worn with worry smile.    
“I heard everything. Did you borrow my multi-tool, again?” you asked with a sly but weary grin.  
  
Poe laughed into the back of your hand, and for a moment you swore you saw his cheeks blush. “You heard that, huh? It’s in my quarters. I wanted to keep it safe from others.”  
“Sure you did.”  
Poe laughed again. “You know me too well.”  
“I know there’s more to you than your ego,” you whispered.   
“And I know, there’s more to you than that quiet facade you offer,” Poe whispered back.  
  
You laughed softly. “So, did someone tip off the First Order?”  
“No. But it was a lure,” Poe started. You raised your brow, waiting for Poe to fill in the details.  
  
The First Order indeed had been experimenting with bioengineered strains of various viruses. The base, with the fake intel regarding First Order outposts, had been a lure for a test run; the information purposely leaked to a known undercover Resistance spy. A spy who had met his end shortly after at the hands of the First Order. Poe cringed at the revelation. Losing good people got to him.  
  
“They were counting for us to show up. They knew we’d never pass up a chance for blueprints,” Poe frowned. “It was a sophisticated setup. The virus was in cold storage until someone activated a trip wire. Then the storage opened, the vents came on, and the virus was spread. Luckily for us, the virus didn’t spread beyond Shadow Squadron. It’s the perfect weapon, though,” Poe stood up and walked to the other side of your bed to get you water.  
  
“How so?” you asked, tracking Poe’s movement while he refilled your cup.  
“Incapacitating the Resistance without firing a single blaster. They could wipe us out if they wanted to, but at least we now have a vaccine.” Poe tipped the cup to your mouth and insisted you drink.  
  
You reached up and grazed his hand with yours. You wanted to hold the cup yourself. Poe chuckled. “So stubborn,” he whispered, then ran his free hand down your cheek. A cough announced the presence of the nurse. You frowned. You wanted another minute alone with Poe.  
  
“Sorry, Major Y/LN. But since you’re awake, it’s time to get you moving,” the nurse smiled.  
“Watch Y/N wanting to get up without help,” Poe joked towards the nurse. He wasn’t entirely wrong.   
  
You hated being dependent on someone for the littlest thing. You sat up and weakly pulled your legs to the left.  
“Careful now, Major. You haven’t used your muscles in three months. You’ll need help,” the nurse rushed to your side, and so did Poe.  
“I can do it myself,” you denied their offered hands.  The nurse and Poe glanced at each other, shaking their heads.  
  
You moved closer to the edge of your bed, stretching your legs down, feeling the cold floor against your feet. You pushed on your arms to heave your body up, and for a moment you stood. Then you wobbled, feeling your body tilt left as your knees gave way. Poe caught you from the side.  
“Stubborn,” he laughed while holding on to you to help you into a wheelchair.  
  
He put your socks and shoes on your feet, then rolled you towards the rehab room, where your squad was hard at work to get back in shape, Finn and Rey helping out.  
“Major Y/LN!” Lieutenant Kirana called out to you. You smiled. The young lieutenant’s skin was back to purple. A sign of improved health. The rest of your squad came to your side to shake hands. Tired but happy faces all around. “You had us worried for a while.”  
“You had him worried,” Finn grinned sheepishly.  
“Did I now?” you perked your eyes up at Poe, and he blushed.  
  
He helped you out of your chair and towards a machine to help with your leg muscles. A physical therapist explained how to use the machine and took notes while you started pushing weights. Poe stood by your side the whole time, now and then offering a sly smile.  
“What?” you asked with some annoyance.  
“You keep it up, you’ll have stronger legs than me,” Poe quirked a brow in a smart ass way.   
  
You shook your head. That didn’t take long for him to get back into cocky, know-it-all mode. You stopped pushing the weights. “Just for once, can you be you and tell me what’s really on your mind,” you clenched your jaw.  
“I don’t know what you mean,” Poe denied.  
“Right,” you stood up, completely forgetting that you’d been tied to a medical bed for the last three months and that your muscles were weak, because not even a second after, you felt your knees give out, again. And Poe caught you. Again. Except this time, your arms ended up around his neck, clinging on as you caught your breath from the shock of falling.  
  
“So stubborn,” you felt Poe breathe onto your hair. You sunk your head into his chest, and his hold on you tightened. You waited for him to help you back into your wheelchair, but he held tight. “I thought, I was going to lose you,” he whispered. “I could hardly bear the thought of you not being around,” his voice cracked a little. You tilted your head up and were met with caring eyes. Warm eyes with hints of worry in the creases at the corners. All the smugness was gone. The know-it-all, can-do-it-all expression replaced with caring focus. There he was, the real Poe. The one you had hoped to meet one day.  
  
You sunk your head back into his chest. “I love you, too, Poe,” you whispered. You felt him sigh in relief, then kiss the top of your hair, and you both stood silent for a while, listening to the other’s breathing. 

 

**Author's Note:**

> [*] Jackets in this case means personnel file.


End file.
